Premodern Connections Series
About the Series
Premodern Connections is a home base for the many at BC who study the premodern deeply, and for the many more who are simply drawn to it.
Boston College is home to an extraordinary concentration of premodern expertise — scholars, students, and staff whose work spans the centuries before 1800. That expertise threads through nearly every corner of the university: the McMullen Museum and Burns Library, English, History, and Law, Music and Theology, Romance Languages, Art History, and Classics. Premodern Connections aims to weave us together a little more tautly, providing a series of events at which we can see old friends, meet new ones, and share work more or less informally!
For more information, contact either Sarah G. Ross (History) or Esteban Crespo (Romance Languages and Literatures), co-conveners of Premodern Connections.
Calendar of Events
Fall 2026
This is a community-driven series. Some presenters’ details will be updated closer to the events’ date.
Do you want to be one of the lucky scholars who presents? Contact us or fill out the forms!
Come join any event, even if you did not RSVP!
Meet & Greet Our Research
Thu, Sept 10 | 5:30-7:00 pm | RSVP
Connolly House (Boston College, 300 Hammond Street, Chestnut Hill, MA 02467, USA)
Refreshments Served
Pieter Claesz, Breakfast with Ham (1647), oil on panel / wood 16 × 24 in, State Hermitage Museum
Join us in celebrating the new academic year! Bring a thought or two about your current scholarly pursuits. We will provide light refreshments to fuel the evening’s interactions, as well as a rather premodern surprise! (Now you really have to attend and find out what that is, don’t you?)
The Tale of a Medieval Survivor: Book Talk
Thu, Sept 17 | 4:30-6:00 pm | RSVP
History Department Seminar Room (Stokes Hall South S376, 307 Beacon Street, Chestnut Hill, MA)
Light refreshments
A conversation with Professor Sara McDougall (CUNY Graduate Center) about her latest book, Justice for Jehanne: The Tale of a Medieval Survivor (Princeton UP, 2026).
From the publisher: “A spellbinding narrative history that defies modern assumptions about women’s lives in the Middle Ages and informs contemporary debates about sexual violence and the limits of justice”
Workshop Lunch
Fri, Oct 16 | 1:30-3:00 pm | RSVP and Register to Present
Burns Library
Lunch served
Sofonisba Anguissola, Game of Chess (1555), oil on canvas, 72 × 97 cm, National Museum in Poznan
Come share a bite while reading and discussing the research of two precirculated pieces at the most inspiring library on campus. Sign up to be one of the lucky scholars whose written piece will receive feedback! Lunch served.
Happy Hour Talks
Wed, Nov 11 | 5:30-7:00 pm | RSVP and Register to Present
Burns Library
Refreshments served
Wine Cup (Kylix) with Symposium Scene (480 BCE), Carlos Collection of Ancient Art, acquired in honor of His All Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, 5 1/4" (13.4 cm).
Let’s toast! Sign up to deliver a short lighting talk, or just come to mingle and connect with our thriving community. A book exhibit from Burns Library’s vault will complement the lightning talks!
Holiday Soirée
Wed, Dec 9 | 5-7 pm | RSVP
Burns Library
Refreshments served
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Gerrit van Honthorst, detail of Musical Group on a Balcony (1622), oil on panel, 122 × 85 3/16 in., The J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles, 70.PB.34.
Let’s celebrate the end of the semester and our scholarly achievements! Grab a bite, take a sip, and toast while exploring the small book exhibit.
Spring 2027
More to come soon!